Controlling Fortitude
by Sariasprincy
Summary: Asking for ones help is not always a bad thing, Sakura learns. ItaSaku non massacre.


**(A/N: So...I actually wrote this one a long time ago and decided I would revise it now. So here it is.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto and other characters!)

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Controlling Fortitude****  
Theme number 19: Night  
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Sakura narrowed her eyes in concentration as she continued healing Shisui while the battle around them persisted. She forced her habit down of looking up when groans of pain sounded nearby from dying, enemy shinobi and instead focused on pulling the kunai out of the Uchiha's shoulder. He didn't even flinch as she pulled it out and healed the gash it left in its wake.

The moment Sakura finished healing him he jumped up and rejoined the battle. The kunoichi stood to help, but stopped when Genma limped over to her, a katana through his thigh. He shoved his Anbu mask aside as Sakura moved to lay him on the ground. She made sure he was comfortable before she began checking his pulse.

"Haruno, behind you," he warned her.

She turned at his warning and knocked the kunai out of the way that was headed straight for her heart. An enemy shinobi advanced on her and immediately her mind ran through multiple strategies as she tried to figure out how to kill him off while keeping Genma alive.

Quickly Sakura pulled the katana out of Genma's leg and threw him her cloak. "Stop the bleeding," she commanded as she turned her attention back to the advancing ninja.

The Cloud Nin jumped forward and Sakura brought up her sword to block his weapon. He quickly knocked her blade out of the way and jabbed as she jumped away. Unfortunately, she didn't move fast enough and the tip of his blade dug into her leg above the knee. She clenched her teeth together to hide the gasp of pain and countered his attack.

Sakura wasn't sure how long they deflected one another's attacks, but her attention divided when Genma called her. "It's not stopping."

The kunoichi looked back and forth, searching for any help. She thought of smashing a crater in the ground to make the enemy back off and grab someone's attention, but with Genma so close and injured it could seriously hurt him. Plus she needed the chakra to heal him.

A sudden glint of metal out of the corner of her eye brought Sakura back to her fight and she turned in time to see the Cloud ninja ram the hilt of his katana into her hip. A crack made its way to her ears, but kept her lips firmly sealed and numbed it with medical chakra before the pain could incapacitate her. It was the only temporary healing she could do before she found herself engaged in battle once more.

Where was her team? Weren't they supposed to be watching her back as she healed the injured?

A small groan of annoyance escaped Sakura's lips and she paused as she waited for an opening. At the last second, she rammed her katana forward and dug the blade into the man's shoulder.

Sakura knew this battle was going to be a long one. There were only three Konoha teams and fifty Cloud ninja to fight off. She wished she could say she regretted going on this mission to help free a nearby village from Cloud's hold, but she would be lying. She wanted more than anything to free these people even if it cost her something in return.

A flash caught the corner of Sakura's eyes and she turned in time to see her fearless captain take down three enemy shinobi with his infamous Katon Goukakyuu no Jutsu.

"Uchiha!" she yelled.

He turned at the sound of her call and immediately rushed forward to cover her. Sakura returned to Genma's side and pulled her blood-stained cloak away from his leg to see his wound was still bleeding.

"Shit," she murmured as she pressed a glowing hand to Genma's leg. He let out a small hiss and Sakura froze when she felt something in the wound.

A piece of the blade had chipped off in his bone.

"I need to reopen the wound," Sakura said, as she tried to numb as much of his leg as she could before she grabbed a kunai and reopened the part of the wound she had already healed.

Carefully Sakura dug through his thigh until she found the piece of metal. Genma hissed as she pulled the blade piece out and she could tell he was trying to blank his face as much as possible. Sakura dropped the metal on the ground before she pulled out a bottle of disinfectant.

"This is really going to hurt," Sakura warned before she applied the medicine.

Genma tried to keep his expression carefully composed, but the pain and stress distorted his face and eventually caused him to pass out. She didn't blame him and she definitely wouldn't hold it again him. The pain he was going through was excruciating and there was only so much hurt the body could go through before it eventually shut itself down.

As the sounds of battle faded around them, Sakura found it easier to concentrate and was able to successfully start closing her partner's wound. She started healing the bone in his leg as a presence appeared next to her. She knew it was her captain, but she didn't look up as she continued to focus on the wound.

"How is he?" Itachi asked calmly.

"Alive," she reported.

"Can he be moved?" he asked.

Sakura made a swift sweep around the clearing and confirmed the battle was over, thanks to the Konoha Anbu squads and nodded. "Once I close the wound."

Itachi nodded in reply. "Call me when you are done. There are a few others that need attending to, but they can wait until we are situated."

Sakura tilted her head slightly to show she understood before she continued working on her comrade.

By the time Sakura was finished healing his wounds, she felt exhausted. One medic to heal eight shinobi – herself included – took a lot of energy and just after two she was already tried. A warm liquid ran down her knee and when Sakura looked down she found herself staring at the wound she had gotten from the fight with the Cloud nin earlier.

Glancing around, she found her cloak laying close by and pulled it to her before she ripped off a piece. She tied the cloth around her bleeding wound before she gazed around and called for Itachi.

He came shortly afterwards and placed the unconscious Genma on his back before he headed towards the town they had just saved from the Cloud invasion. People clapped and cheered as the eight Anbu entered the small village and the leader greeted them. He told Itachi he'd found them rooms for the night and led them to a small house that would be their temporary quarters. Sakura followed Itachi silently, keeping her eyes fixed on Genma in case he woke.

When Itachi placed their unconscious comrade on the bed, Sakura immediately knelt next to him and rechecked him to be sure he was okay before she followed Itachi into the next room, where the rest of their injured companions were waiting for treatment.

Sakura's steps faltered slightly when she saw more than half of them needed treatment and she cringed when she realized how low of chakra she was going to be after she was done. There was definitely going to be a chakra depletion headache waiting for her when she woke up in the morning.

"Alright," Sakura said, catching their attention. "Those with less severe injuries go into the next room; I'll come to you when I'm done here."

Fortunately everyone but two people walked out of the room. Shino and Tenten were left lying on the bed, looking barely conscious. Well Tenten looked barely conscious; it was hard to tell with Shino's sunglasses and high collar.

Quietly, Sakura walked to the edge of the bed and began scanning the two over. Tenten was in worse condition with a mild concussion and some internal bleeding while Shino had multiple gashes on his wrists and a dislocated shoulder.

Didn't Itachi say only a few were injured?

With a long sigh, the kunoichi made her way next to Tenten and began her job.

By the time Sakura was done healing everyone, it was nearing midnight and her chakra was low. Exhaustion was running circles in her body and her eyes were threatening to close, but she forcefully kept them open and tried to stay concentration on her job. She needed to check on Genma one more time before she retired for the night.

Silently, Sakura entered the room Itachi had placed their unconscious comrade in and froze when she found the other bed in the room was occupied by Itachi. He was resting against the headboard reading a book in a relaxed pose, but from experience she knew he was anything but unaware and he looked up upon her entry.

Without a word, Sakura walked to the edge of Genma's bed and began checking him over, looking at his leg first and last to double check her work.

"Everyone's accounted for and treated," she informed Itachi as she removed her hand from Genma's leg.

Itachi nodded in approval.

"All except you," she said evenly.

The Uchiha stared at her for a long moment before he returned to his book. "I can assure you I am not harmed," he replied calmly.

"It would be more assuring if I checked for myself," Sakura said calmly.

Itachi watched her for a long time. Sakura wasn't sure how much time had gone by as she stood there under his scrutinizing gaze, but it was long enough to make her shift from foot to foot uncomfortably. His piercing stare caused small tremors to run up her spine and she had to fight herself to keep down the blush that threatened to rise to her cheeks, though she knew even with his hard look she wouldn't back down.

One of the reasons she took this mission was because more than one shinobi was going on it that liked to believe they were invincible. They could be supporting broken ribs and a collapsed lung and they would fake it and pretend they were fine. From all the years Sakura worked at the hospital she knew Itachi was the worst one and she'd be damned if he denied her and refused to let her check him. Itachi was a shinobi that would push himself to his limits to complete his mission even if it took a toll on his health and to be honest Sakura worried about him. She couldn't count the number of times he'd ended up on her operating table because of his obstinacy and she knew if he'd taken the necessary precautions it would be countable.

Fortunately Sakura realized she wouldn't have to force him when he eventually closed his book and sat up. "Very well," he said quietly.

Carefully, Sakura walked around Genma's bed and came to a stop next to Itachi. She hesitated slightly before she rested her hands on his chest and closed her eyes in concentration, telling herself this was strictly professional. Though that thought was suddenly gone from her mind when the sudden temptation of falling asleep hit her. Forcefully she pushed it back and pressed her eyes together almost painfully to stay awake.

When Sakura was convinced he was fine, she started to pull back, but stopped when she felt an odd strain in his left arm. Slowly, she opened her eyes only to be met with Itachi's clear, obsidian gaze. Her breath caught unintentionally and she suddenly felt self-conscious at their proximity.

"Are you done?" Itachi asked not unkindly.

Quickly Sakura lowered her eyes and instead focused on his left wrist, the place she had noticed his slight injury. "You have a small strain," Sakura murmured to her keep her voice even as she picked up his hand.

Carefully she wrapped her fingers around his wrist and flooded his forearm with healing chakra before she focused on finding the strain again. The kunoichi only pulled back when she was sure the injury was healed and this time she made sure to look down when she opened her eyes again.

Itachi flexed his arm slightly and nodded in thanks before he sat back and returned to his book. Sakura turned to find another room to sleep, but stopped when the numbing chakra she'd placed on her hip flickered and faded, causing a painful jolt to race up her side.

She snapped her teeth together and dug her nails into the palm of her hands to hide the moan of pain and quickly walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her before she let any emotion show on her face. A tight throbbing on her thigh just above her knee joined the ache in her side and quickly Sakura placed her hand on her hip, ready to heal the injury.

She froze when she realized she had no chakra left.

"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit," she murmured when she realized there was nothing she could do.

Sakura leaned against the counter as more sharp pains raced through her body and she snapped her eyes shut. She closed her mouth and carefully watched herself so she didn't let slip a moan of pain. The kunoichi rested her hand on the counter and felt her fingers wrap around the handle on the faucet. Quickly she turned the handle to cover the groan that escaped her lips with the sound of the running water.

Carefully, Sakura pushed off the counter and turned the shower on before she sunk to the floor and groaned against the pain. She moved her hands restlessly over her legs and the floor as if trying to find some position that would lessen the pain.

"Haruno-san?" Itachi's voice called from the other side of the door. "Are you all right?"

She turned and stared at the door when she realized she'd unconsciously been banging her head softly against the wall like she'd been trying to knock herself out.

Quickly she stopped shuffling and watched the door to see if he was going to try and walk in. "Fine," she replied.

She silently cursed herself when she realized how shaky her voice sounded. Itachi didn't reply and she guessed he didn't believe her, but he walked away anyways, leaving her to curl up into a ball alone.

The smell of blood caught Sakura's attention and when she looked down she realized the cloth she'd used to bandage her wound had bled through. Carefully, she unwound it and stared at the bloody messy for a long moment before she dragged herself over to the drawers and began searching for any type of disinfectant and bandage.

There was neither.

She bit her lip and stared at the empty drawers when she realized she had two choices. One, go out into the room and get her medical supplies or, two, call Itachi for help. The first one sounded more appealing, but when she tried to pull herself up onto her feet her side throbbed painfully and she dropped down onto the closed toilet seat.

Option one was no longer an option.

Sakura looked down at the edge of the bathtub as the shower continued to run before she took a deep breath. "Uchiha-san," she called weakly.

A few seconds passed before she heard footsteps outside the door. "Yes?"

"Could you please…?" She paused. "Can you come in? I need your help."

A few moments passed before the bathroom door opened and Itachi walked in. Sakura was still looking at the edge of the bathtub, but she could feel Itachi's gaze taking her in. He seemed to know what she wanted for he disappeared and returned a moment later with her medical bag.

It was silent as Itachi set her bag down and moved to turn off the noisy water. He knelt down next to her and began rummaging through her bag until he found the medical supplies he was looking for.

Sakura almost asked how he knew what to do, but decided against it when she realized he must've learned at least the basics. He was a genius after all and had probably learned enough to keep himself alive.

When the disinfectant touched Sakura's wound she gasped and pulled away from it only to jar her broken hip bone. She flinched and snapped her eyes shut as she grabbed Itachi's shoulders to wait for the pain to pass.

When it ebbed, she cracked her eyes open and slowly released her grip on her captain, realizing how uncomfortable he must be at the contact. "Sorry," she murmured as she sat back and dug her nails into the seams of her pants.

"There is no need to apologize," Itachi replied as he continued to clean her wound.

Sakura stared at him as he wrapped her injury and smiled in thanks when he finished. The kunoichi stood to walk to the bed, but Itachi picked her up and carried her instead. She yelped in surprise and slight pain, but wrapped her arms around his neck anyways.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"It would be worse for you to walk right now," he informed her as he pulled back the covers and set her on the bed.

It was still slightly warm from where he had been sitting and gratefully Sakura relaxed into the comfortable mattress. She watched as he turned off the light next to the bed, casting the room in shadows, before he returned to the bathroom to clean up the bloody mess.

It wasn't long before he returned and she watched as he silently placed her medical bag where she'd set it earlier. A comfortable silence settled around them as Itachi walked to the window to keep watch. Sakura felt herself begin drifting into sleep, but was brought out of it by Itachi's murmur. "I am sorry."

Sakura opened her eyes slowly and focused them on his shadowed form. "For what?"

"If I had been watching your back you would not have suffered these injuries," he explained quietly.

The kunoichi pierced her lips together. "There is no need to apologize," she repeated his earlier words quietly.

Itachi didn't reply for a long moment. "Get some rest, Haruno-san," he murmured. "You are going to need your energy for tomorrow."

Sakura closed her eyes tiredly and listened as Itachi moved quietly around the room. When she opened her eyes again, he was no longer standing next to the window, but was instead sitting on the windowsill, looking out into the village. She realized he had no intention of sleeping.

"What about you?" Sakura finally whispered. She sat up carefully as to not jar her broken bone.

He looked at her and raised an eye brow in question.

"You need rest too," she said.

Itachi turned away from her and gazed out the window. "Someone needs to keep watch."

"We were just in a battle, Uchiha-san. No one is going to attack when they see all those bodies out in the field," she countered.

The Uchiha turned back to her and watched her for a long moment. "Why?"

Sakura gave him a confused look. "Why what?"

"Why are you trying to get me to rest?" he explained quietly.

Sakura blushed and looked away, hoping he wouldn't notice the pink dusting on her cheeks. She hesitated and slowly built up the courage to speak. "I worry about you," she murmured quietly, staring at her hands. "You don't take proper care of yourself, you're always stressed, and you push your body until you're practically dead on your feet." Slowly she raised her gaze until she was looking him in the eye. "You're not invincible, Itachi."

Itachi seemed to catch the sudden title change for he stared at her for another long moment. "You are worried about me," he stated.

Sakura nodded once. "Ever since you came back from that mission that had you in the hospital for two weeks I've been keeping tabs on you to make sure you aren't over worked."

He paused. Sakura could practically see the wheels turning in his mind as he thought and analyzed everything she had said. "And this mission?" he finally asked.

The kunoichi looked down at her lap as she fisted the sheets. "I offered to go to keep an eye on you and everyone else."

"Why?"

Sakura looked up at him. "I told you. You worry me."

Itachi gave her a hard stare that she knew meant he didn't believe her and with a soft sigh she looked away again. There was no way she was going to tell him she sort of had this crush on him.

"Is that it?" he asked.

_No._ "Yes," she murmured.

Before it could register in her mind Sakura found herself in incredibly close proximity with Itachi. Her breath hitched slightly as he leaned towards her, his eyes searching her face. His breath fanned across her face and she could smell his masculine scent. It smelled like the rain after a heavy storm.

"You are lying," he accused quietly.

_Just a little._ "No," Sakura replied.

A small amused smirk caressed his lips and before Sakura knew what was happening he pressed his lips to hers lightly. The soft pressure made her lips tingle and before she could stop herself she returned the kiss.

Sakura reached up to get a better angle, but Itachi pulled back. She stared at him in confusion and he smirked lightly in response.

"You were lying," he accused again.

Her expression turned from confusion to hurt when she realized his ulterior motive. He didn't really want to kiss her; he was just trying to prove a point. And the worst part was he just proved it. She felt like crying or punching something – or someone.

Sakura's eyes narrowed and she quickly turned away from Itachi. She didn't know how to react to the situation and all her mind was screaming was to get away.

"Yeah, I was lying," Sakura said, "but you didn't have to do that to find out why."

Without a word, she threw back the covers and stood, ignoring the excruciating pain that jolted through her side. She could feel Itachi's eyes burning a hole in her back and she tried to force that out of her mind with little success.

"I apologize. I thought that was what you wanted," Itachi suddenly murmured, affectively stopping her in her tracks.

Slowly Sakura turned to face him. "What?"

Itachi was quiet for a long moment. "I learned about your…attraction to me when you exhausted yourself to the point of passing out when I returned from the mission that made you start keeping tabs on me."

Sakura paused. "I thought you didn't know about that."

"I did not," he agreed. "But that does not mean I did not notice how you always looked for my injuries before anyone else's on missions."

The kunoichi felt a faint blush touch her cheeks. "Oh." She paused. "But why did you kiss me? I've been on enough missions with you to know you don't do something unless there's an advantage for you."

It was miniscule, but Sakura saw it. The small sudden tense set of his shoulders and narrowing of his eyes as if what she had said made him angry. She couldn't think of why though; she was just pointing out her observations. Sakura began to wonder if she should have just kept her mouth shut, but immediately erased the thought when an amused smirk appeared on his lips.

"If that were true then I would not have helped you with your injury," he said calmly.

Sakura hesitated as she thought. "It was an advantage to you because I would have continued to sit in the bathroom with the water running."

Itachi paused as he analyzed what she said. "If that were the case, I would have dropped off your bag in the bathroom and shut it off."

"But you would have had to hear my moans of pain throughout the night," she countered, her voice turning sarcastic towards the end.

He smirked. "A silencing jutsu would have done fine."

She opened her mouth to retort, but frowned when she realized he wasn't going to back down. It didn't matter what she said, he'd think of a response to counter her arguments until she had none left.

Slowly Sakura closed her mouth again and placed her hands on her hips, only to flinch when another shock raced up her side. Itachi was on his feet immediately and casually he walked over to her before he picked her up and brought her back to the bed like he owned her.

"Hey, what are you-?" she started.

"Calm down, Sakura," he said softly as he placed her back on the mattress. "All your stress will make the pain worse."

She watched as he carefully placed the blankets back over her. "How do you know that?"

"There is a lot I know," he replied.

Sakura smirked. "Really? Then what am I thinking?"

Itachi's answer was immediate. "That I should rest and give you an apology kiss."

Her smirk fell. That was exactly what she was thinking.

Though, she wasn't given much time to think as Itachi leaned down and kissed her lips. Sakura returned it, but frowned again when he pulled away and returned to the window. She turned away from him, her anger rising, but quickly looked back at him when she heard him draw the curtains. The mattress dipped as Itachi climbed into bed next to Sakura and he wrapped an arm around her ribcage, careful to avoid any contact with her injury.

"Rest, Sakura," he murmured before he placed a kiss in the hollow of her neck.

Sakura made a noncommittal noise in response before she began to drift off to sleep. The last thing she remembered was Itachi's muscular body lined up perfectly with hers and his warm breath fanning across her collarbone before she sank into a much needed slumber.

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**(A/N: So I know the end is a little blunt and there's no way in hell will Itachi ever move forward that quickly, but hey. It's my story. Anything can happen! Besides, with Itachi actually being a good guy and wanting to save his younger brother I think anything can really happen.**

**So reviews are much apprectiated and believe it or not they actually do help me write. Sometimes you guys have really interesting thoughts [that kind of sounded mean...sorry] and you guys say something that makes me think of a really good story idea. So review please! Thanks much!)**


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